Railways in Wisconsin are closer to becoming safer.

The US Senate voted 83 to 16 to approve a bi-partisan, 5-year transportation funding bill on Thursday.

That bill includes several provisions championed by US Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.

The new bill will allow for more transparency, meaning railroad companies will be required to provide local officials with a public version of the most recent bridge inspection reports.

It also calls for comprehensive oil spill response plans.

The Department of Transportation will require rail companies to improve their plans for responding to a worst-case oil spill.